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Single-Cell Biophysics: Measurement, Modulation, and Modeling
Poster Abstracts
109
22-POS
Board 11
A Rho Gtpase Based Model Explains the Spontaneous Directional Migration of Neural
Crest Cells
Brian Merchant, Leah Keshet,
James Feng
.
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
During early vertebrate embryogenesis, neural crest cells (NCCs) migrate in clusters from the
neural tube to various target locations over long distances. Their collective migration is tightly
regulated by environmental signals and intercellular interactions. Strikingly, NCC clusters are
capable of spontaneously developing a persistent migration down migratory corridors in the
absence of chemoattractants. To understand this phenomenon, we built a vertex-dynamics model
that predicts the key modes of cell interactions—contact inhibition of locomotion (CIL) and co-
attraction (COA)—through the modulation of Rho GTPase biochemistry. Using such a signaling-
based model, as opposed to implementing hard-coded simulation rules, we find that CIL and
COA conspire to suppress Rac1 activity, leading to the persistence of polarization (POP) of
clustering cells and thus the spontaneous directional migration in the absence of chemical
gradients.